Hyperlinks included in e-mail body are dead
Our sales department sends out many e-mails every day to current and prospective customers. These e-mails include a picture and a link to a demonstration video. Many customers are unable to click on the link, and can only access the video by copying and pasting the link into their browser. Does anyone know of a way to ensure a link is active, despite the client's HTML settings?
Software/Hardware used:
Software/Hardware used:
ASKED:
June 7, 2005 2:17 PM
UPDATED:
June 17, 2005 10:57 AM
Answer Wiki:
This would be a HUGE security hole. It's the receiver's email client -- you can't (or shouldn't be able to) force it to override his/her settings.
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You’re not going to be able to do this. The recipients have a right to protect their system — and clicking the wrong link can open you up to SOOO much nastiness — spyware, adware, keystroke loggers, and, of course, phishers, to name only some of the problems out there that can be activated from a link.
All YOU can do is to put a line into the emails that tells them they can copy and paste into the browser if it doesn’t work as a link, and maybe also state that some receiving systems may not allow the links to work from the email (thus absolving you of clumsiness). This also shows that you aren’t a phisher trying to redirect them to a site other than the one shown in the email link itself.
Good luck.
Thank you both for your input. You reiterated what I had thought myself, but my boss was adamant that there had to be a way around it, and I thought that it would be helpful to have advice from other experts to back up what I already told him. Thank you for taking the time to help me out.
Your prospective and or present customers that receive the emails may wonder why the link is dead, *but* it is probably true that all their links are dead if they click on them, not just yours. It is definately in the settings on their machines.
If they are using a home machine, they would have to change their own security settings; which, if they did set them that way in the first place, it would cause them much difficulties changing them back and forth just for your company’s link.
If they are using a corporation workstation, they would not be able to change them without permission from the IT department, etc.
The suggestion that it is not possible to force anyone to change the settings is true. Your company could not do that. PLUS, do you want to responsible for their systems being taken over by hijackers? This is what you tell the Boss.
Just put notification in the emails stating: if you are unable to click on the link to navigate to the site, copy and paste. This issue is due to your security settings and the link is an working active one…or something on that line.